Systems and methods for enabling additional devices to check in to bluetooth low energy (ble) beacons

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for checking many users in to a location using a Bluetooth® low energy (BLE) beacon. The provided systems and methods may allow a BLE beacon to facilitate a check in with a remote server that processes check ins and then disconnect from the device used to check in. The device may be assigned a unique identifier that may be broadcast from the device during the check in so that the BLE beacon can quickly scan for the identifier and connect with the device based on the identifier to provide content and other information to the device.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A system, comprising:
 a non-transitory memory; and 
 one or more hardware processors coupled to the non-transitory memory and configured to read instructions from the non-transitory memory to cause the system to perform operations comprising:
 checking a mobile computing device of a user into a merchant store based at least in part on wireless communications between the mobile computing device and a first wireless device deployed at the merchant store; 
 assigning, after the mobile computing device has been checked into the merchant store, a device identifier to the mobile computing device; 
 sending the device identifier to a plurality of wireless devices located at the merchant store, wherein the plurality of wireless devices include the first wireless device and at least a second wireless device different from the first wireless device; 
 monitoring, at least in part based on the device identifier, a location of the mobile computing device at the merchant store; 
 providing content to the second wireless device, wherein a location of the second wireless device at the merchant store is within a threshold distance of the monitored location of the mobile computing device; and 
 facilitating a transaction based on the provided content, the transaction involving the mobile computing device and the merchant store. 
 
 
     
     
       2. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the operations further comprise decrypting an encrypted token received from the mobile computing device, wherein the checking the mobile computing device into the merchant store is performed based on the decrypting of the encrypted token. 
     
     
       3. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the content provided to the second wireless device is customized to one or more products located at the location of the second wireless device. 
     
     
       4. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the operations further comprise:
 checking the mobile computing device out of the merchant store based on a determination that an expiration time associated with a check-in of the mobile computing device at the merchant store has been reached; and 
 informing at least one of the first wireless device or the second wireless device that the mobile computing device has been checked out. 
 
     
     
       5. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the first wireless device or the second wireless device includes a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) device, a Near Field Communications (NFC) device, or a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) device. 
     
     
       6. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the device identifier comprises a randomly generated number. 
     
     
       7. The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a remote server, wherein the facilitating the transaction comprises processing, at least in part via the remote server, the transaction involving the mobile computing device and the merchant store. 
     
     
       8. A method, comprising:
 performing a check-in of a mobile computing device of a user with a merchant store, wherein the check-in is performed at least in part based on information obtained from the mobile computing device; 
 assigning a device identifier to the mobile computing device; 
 causing the device identifier to be transmitted to a plurality of wireless devices, including the mobile computing device, located at the merchant store; 
 monitoring, at least in part based on the device identifier, a location of the mobile computing device at the merchant store; 
 causing content to be provided to the mobile computing device via at least one of the plurality of wireless devices; and 
 facilitating a transaction based on the provided content, the transaction involving the mobile computing device and the merchant store. 
 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 8 , wherein the device identifier comprises a randomly generated number. 
     
     
       10. The method of  claim 8 , wherein the device identifier is sent to a first wireless device of the plurality of wireless devices and to a second wireless device of the plurality of wireless devices different from the first wireless device, and the content is sent to the second wireless device. 
     
     
       11. The method of  claim 8 , further comprising decrypting an encrypted token received from the mobile computing device, wherein the check-in is performed based on the decrypting of the encrypted token. 
     
     
       12. A method, comprising:
 requesting information from a first wireless device of a plurality of wireless devices at a merchant location of a merchant; 
 receiving the information from the first wireless device, the information including a digital signature; 
 verifying, via one or more keys stored in a memory of a mobile computing device, the digital signature; 
 checking the first wireless device into the merchant location based on a verification of the digital signature; 
 receiving, after the checking into the merchant location, a device identifier and instructions to broadcast the device identifier; 
 broadcasting the device identifier to the first wireless device and to at least a subset of the wireless devices different from the first wireless device; 
 establishing, based on the broadcasting of the device identifier, a wireless communication link with the subset of the wireless devices; and 
 receiving, from the subset of the wireless devices through the wireless communication link, content associated with the merchant location; 
 wherein one or more of the requesting, the receiving the information, the verifying, the checking into the merchant location, the receiving the device identifier, the broadcasting, the establishing, or the receiving the content are performed by the mobile computing device. 
 
     
     
       13. The method of  claim 12 , further comprising performing, based on the received content, a transaction between the mobile computing device and the merchant. 
     
     
       14. The method of  claim 12 , wherein the information further includes a token associated with the first wireless device. 
     
     
       15. The method of  claim 12 , further comprising:
 encrypting, after the digital signature has been verified, at least a portion of the information; and 
 sending the encrypted portion of the information to the first wireless device. 
 
     
     
       16. The method of  claim 12 , wherein the device identifier is broadcasted for as long as an expiration time associated with the checking into the merchant location. 
     
     
       17. The method of  claim 12 , wherein the device identifier is randomly generated by the first wireless device. 
     
     
       18. The method of  claim 12 , wherein the content comprises one or more offers from the merchant. 
     
     
       19. The method of  claim 12 , further comprising, before the requesting the information:
 receiving a broadcast identifier from the first wireless device; and 
 initiating Bluetooth communications with the first wireless device, wherein the information is requested via the Bluetooth communications. 
 
     
     
       20. The method of  claim 12 , further comprising receiving a public key from a remote server, wherein the verifying is performed using the public key as one of the one or more keys.